Ripped at the Seams
by TRiPL3F
Summary: "She quickly learned how easy it was for her emotional awareness to spill over and around her, losing the outline of her individuality. She became lost in a transparent realm of what felt like reality and fantasy. She drifted into the gravity of his stone cold onyx eyes. He was handsome. He was much more handsome than any asshole had the right to be." A romance. XxSasuSakuxX
**Hello fellow fans! I'm Ashley also known as TRiPL3F, and this is my first fanfic ever. I ship everyone's canon relationship in Naruto and I always found Sasuke's and Sakura's love a ridiculous paradox of emotions. It's a drag ( x_x ) because it's so hard to believe that love is even present in the behavior shown. Alas, the show is not called "SasuSaku" but "Naruto" so I have my personal beliefs as to why a lot with this couple wasn't really explained or clarified. I am here to express what I think their love would be like in its early stages; in the blossoming romance.**

 **Here I have crafted a modernized version of the Naruto universe; taking place in present day. The school they grew up in Konoha is the YMCA, their ninjustsu and abilities are boxing and other various athletics. Naruto is still an orphan and Sasuke still has no parents, however Itachi did not kill his parents in my version. The characters in this story have grown up to 23-25 years old, I wanted to work with the same personalities but in mature mindsets.**

 **Please read & review, this is my first fic and I want to know how my readers feel about it! Let me know if you want more!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own shit, except this bomb-ass imagination. Naruto and/or the characters of Naruto do not belong to me.**

Chapter One: Words Unspoken

Sakura woke to the sounds of the morning. What sounded like a small collection of birds chirped a soothing melody right through her bedroom window. Her day had begun. The towns' usual bustle slightly rattled her home. She stared at the ceiling listening to the disquiet of buses, trains, cars, bikes, people and their conversations. She sat-up, stretched out a bit and a yawned. Getting out of bed, she tousled her hair and walked to the bathroom undressing on the way.

She let the scorching hot water beat relentlessly on the floor of her tub until she finished brushing her teeth. In her opinion, hot water provided the cleanest clean, and she loved clean. When she entered the shower she made sure to scrub herself immaculate. The steam from the heat helped relax her mind and body. There was no need to rush, she had to be at the hospital at least an hour early today; and she was way ahead of schedule.

"Ah, the 2nd floor again." She said out loud. There was a particular schizophrenic patient named Maiko who she swore made it a priority to ruin her day every time she was in her charge. The first time she was assigned to Sakura's care; to be polite Sakura purchased a whole bouquet of daffodils to establish a relationship with her patient and start off on the right foot. Maiko was in such a huff about her lunch, she would not cooperate with Sakura unless she immediately got her food in that moment. However, by the time Sakura came back with it, every petal was on the floor and the bouquet was in tatters. They have been nothing but a riot since, remaining close though they equally aggravated each other. Sakura always dealt with her respectfully. Regardless, there was a clear form of care between them.

As she finished brushing her teeth and washing her face, she peered into the mirror and had a moment of nostalgia remembering the daffodils. A frown etched its way on her face.

"…' _sixteen' was a long time ago."_

She answered her own thoughts, and a familiar name rang loudly in her mind.

"… _Sasuke…"_

It's been six years. A smirk came to her face at the thought of him.

What. An. Asshole.

She had dreams of him every once in a while, he was the first and last boy she loved after all and though it was frustrating; she couldn't help that every time she was lonely or thought of love, she thought of Sasuke. He was who she associated the emotion with for a very long time. She shook her head as if to shake him off her mind. She didn't have time for him anymore, not in life, not in action, and not in thought. Sakura was in the middle of drying her petal-pink hair right when her phone rang. She reached for it.

" _Great. Hopefully I don't have to rush…"_

She answered:

"…Hello?"

"Haruno Sakura?" It was the receptionist.

"This is she."

"Yes, Ms. Haruno, it seems that your patient Tanaka Maiko passed in her sleep this morning at 4:23am," The receptionist paused, as if she waited for the sound of remorse. "…Being that she was in your stead for the past year and a half, we do understand how this can take a toll on our staff emotionally…and…and…well, we're going to give you the next 2 days off for the funeral Sakura, we know you two were close."

There was an uncomfortable moment of silence.

"Thank you." Sakura let out a small whimper and hung the phone up. Time did not find a pardon to pass with such news and Sakura did not know what move to make. Just a moment ago she was lost in thought of the many joys and aggravations of her patient and now, with the irony that is her life; was she delivered that dreaded phone call. She looked back into the mirror as one tear streamed down her cheek. Maiko will not be forgotten in her heart. Like some who have burned their existence into her memory. Sakura continued to stare at herself absentmindedly; she realized she needed a distraction.

" _It's a part of life. Loss is a part of life."_

No longer having an agenda, Sakura finished styling her hair and slowly pieced together her outfit of the day; she wore her black jeans with a few natural tears on the left leg and a grey, long-sleeve, loose, button-up blouse with two pockets. She sat on the bed slipping on her converse, memories flooding her mind. When Sakura went past the mirror by the hallway after grabbing her keys, she found herself stopping in front of it; a sad smirk spread as she observed herself. Maiko used to pick on her small frame all the time at the hospital hardly letting up on the fact that she was of a smaller build for women her age. Sakura scoffed. At least she looked young…just not in the way she wanted to. She thanked Maiko in that moment; she recalled all the backward compliments she received from her in the past year.

" _No, you will not be forgotten Maiko."_

She made her silent goodbyes to Maiko and a few more tears slipped out. This situation being heart-wrenchingly familiar left her with other emotions she lacked the devotion to sort out. Sakura grabbed her white jacket and black beanie and left her house.

"I would not even bother." Naruto said to Sasuke, amidst a mouth half full of ramen.

"…Yeah? Why…?" Sasuke questioned.

Naruto and Sasuke. Sasuke and Naruto. They have been friends since childhood, spending most of their time together wrecking havoc in their neighborhood and picking fights with each other. They had gotten in to countless troubles and their best form of communication was yelling. Since the two boys were eleven, they were as thick as thieves. The YMCA brought them and other neighborhood children together. There they met Sakura.

Sasuke and Naruto officially bonded being that they both lack parental guidance of any sort. Naruto was an orphan; a child to never have known love from a parent, and Sasuke being abandoned by his parents didn't make his situation any lighter.

Sasuke, in his younger days permeated with aggression and thought solely of scenario's that would bring him closer to his goals. On top of many other issues plaguing his mind from the past, one of the most unforgiveable in his personal perspective is his abuse from his older brother Itachi. His own brother, who easily drowned his pain in alcohol, drugs and trouble, had no issues relieving his onslaught of unspoken anger on his younger sibling. Whether it came as a group beating or other unspeakable acts, Sasuke would never allow himself to be treated as such trash again, and when the time is right, he will prove that to Itachi.

The two boys were in the middle of discussing the likelihood of gathering the threesome together, like old times. During his travels to Spain, Sasuke grew to understand the importance of the individuals valuable to him; those who filled the holes life mercilessly dug in his heart. Naruto and Sakura immediately came to mind.

Naruto let out an exasperated sigh.

"Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke...ok, it's no secret you broke her heart? Correct? You don't question that at all do you-"

"Yes loser, I know!" Sasuke cut Naruto off in a rush of words. It has always been ever clear on his mind how his disdain for love and affection earlier in his life impeded on his and Sakura's possible romance. Hell, he was in no position to worry about Sakura. His parents were going through a divorce; one committed suicide shortly after the other disappeared. To top it off, his brother sold his soul to the streets. She had to understand, right?

"Wouldn't she be…happy?" the rebuttal. The Sakura Sasuke remembered was always somewhat overly excited with his presence. Though it has been six years…

"HA, HA, HA, HA, you do NOT know Sakura, Oh boy! But you know what? Try your luck! It might be funny." Naruto exclaimed with a hearty laugh. The hesitation was visible in Sasuke's face as one of his eyebrows lifted quizzically.

"Hilarious, Naruto. Explain..." Sasuke demanded.

Naruto was the only person that drove his nerves to the end of their endurance and also the only person he openly chose to continuously hangout with. However, acceptance is what Sasuke gave Naruto; perhaps because he was accepted and acknowledged by him too. They should have been born brothers.

Naruto scratched his head seemingly uneager to speak the words on his mind. He placed down his bowl of ramen and shifted his undivided attention towards Sasuke

"Sasuke…here's the thing…ummm…I haven't said anything to her about you."

Sasuke's glare was unnerving, as if to beg the question 'why?', but dare not ask it. Naruto continued.

"It took her a while, I mean, a _while_ to not get mad at your mention. As far as she knows, you're still in Spain." Naruto gulped hard in worry, "You know, the tiny little detail of your return never really came up. So…I haven't told her anything- you see where this is going right?" The sarcasm bled through his words. Naruto scratched the back of his head nervously. Sasuke tapped his thigh nonchalantly.

"…Alright. There is a chance she's upset with me." said Sasuke.

Naruto smiled and nodded his head before picking up his bowl and continuing to eat. He slurped a few more bunches of ramen viciously before letting out a sigh.

"Yeah actually she _is_ , and not to mention you're dating Ino now. Sakura is going to flip…how was I 'posed to tell her? She cried to me enough about you…" The last words Naruto spoke trailed off slightly from conversational levels to private ones and they bit Sasuke venomously more than was customary. Naruto picked up his bowl and walked the distance to his kitchen, "Geez, than I have to explain to her why I didn't say anything in the first place…What am I going to say, Sasuke?" Naruto genuinely asked whilst placing his dish in the sink and facing Sasuke for verbal redemption.

"…It seems like there is no avoiding it. I didn't want her to see me with Ino…but the longer I'm here, the more I feel obligated to let her know, you understand?" Sasuke struggled with putting his feelings into words. Naruto ran the sink water for about a second before walking away from the mess. He responded without breaking his gaze.

"Yeah, I understand. But will she? She's going to hate me."

"Imagine my positioning."

"Yeah well, still, I should say something first only because I don't want to suffer from the 'Sakura Wrath'." Naruto's mouth curled into his all time signature smirk and pointed in between Sasuke's eyes, "Your case on the other hand…HA HA HA HA!"

Sasuke pursed his lips and engaged his attention to his thoughts. Sakura learning that Ino became romantically involved with him would destroy her, he was sure of it. Though once he returned from Spain for his boxing training, Ino immediately wanted to tell all of Konoha that they were finally together. Showcase it. Display it. Advertise their relationship. He had to put a stop to that behavior. Ino was dissatisfied but fairly easy to control when the relationship was threatened.

Now here's where the details become blurry. It's not as though Sasuke particularly loved Ino. Ino and Sasuke ran into each other overseas in Spain, on a whim. Ino was visiting the country abroad while her father attended some business matters, and Sasuke was sharpening his skills with a renowned Spanish boxer instructor. They soon spent a majority of their time together, Ino made sure to come to his matches. Soon enough, Sasuke was ripped off by the instructor. She then insisted on helping against Sasuke's wishes. She made her father sponsor his entire fourth year of 15 booked matches, and continued to help bring his name to fame. Sasuke wasn't proud that he relied on her father's pocket just to make a name for him in the world of boxing, even if it was just a year. In this time, Ino maintained Sasuke, keeping tabs on him, watching his every move. He did care for her in some way. However, she was a means. She was comfortable to him; growing up she also participated at the YMCA. She fulfilled all his current needs; masculine and financial.

The problem lied with her father, Inoichi Yamanaka. There was a debt to be paid. However, his current conversation was directed in significantly lighter thoughts.

Breaking from his thoughts, Sasuke noticed a change in Naruto's demeanor and his now, glum expression. A short moment of time lapsed in silence when neither of the boys shared words with each other.

Until:

" _Naruto?!"_

Sasuke's ears twitched at the feminine voice echoing through the intercom, rupturing the silence.

" _Naruto?! I texted you! Hurry up and ring me in! It's freaking freezing!"_

A nervous sultriness overtook his physical as he felt his face flame up in recognition of the sound of the female's voice. It must have been the unexpectedness making him react in such an emasculating way. He immediately leered at Naruto who looked like a full-on basket of nerves.

"…So Sasuke, how ready are you to see Sakura?"

It took her two buses to reach Naruto's apartment, but she got there in one piece. The airs' stinging sharp breeze ran through her ripped jeans. These pants were not helpful in guarding her from the frosty chill. Naruto was the only person who she knew she could burst into tears with, playfully beat on and know for a fact that he would never change his approach towards her.

The three of them always spent time together at the YMCA and sometimes after hours. Sakura always paid attention to them due to their stories and adventures; she had an ever growing curiosity as to what it would be like to be their friend. To her, Sasuke and Naruto were so 'cool' not having any parents, with boundless freedom to do whatever they want at any given time. It wasn't until she was much older did she realize the amounts of emotional tragedy they both separately had to experience making them the badass' they were. She eventually developed tenderness towards them as soon as she learned of their upbringing, figuring out that they in fact lived at the YMCA because it was a shelter as well. It then came as no surprise why on occasion they were seemingly unapproachable, wildly acting out, or always getting in screaming matches with whomever. She was twelve when she found out and secretly vowed to be there for them no matter what. And somewhere in between all those emotions and silly-string Sakura gained feelings for Sasuke.

Again, she shook her head to shake it off. It was almost impossible to think solely of a young Naruto when he and Sasuke were practically conjoined at the hip before he left for Spain. Naruto did say he spoke to him on the phone every once in a while but she never asked any further questions.

" _I suppose there are some things that need to be left in the past."_ She thought to herself. Her mind always found a way to upset her further, treading the depths of her thoughts. Particularly the ones she's worked so hard to block out. She started prancing up and down in an effort to keep her body heat up, "NARUTO! OPEN UP! UGHHHH!"

It was a moment before she received a response, and unusually so Naruto answered with a hint of apprehension in his voice.

"… _Uh, hey Sakura! What's going on?"_ Naruto beeped in.

"Naruto! Ring me in already! I'll tell you what's going on when I get up there! It's cold!" Sakura exclaimed.

" _Well, uh the thing is, I'm here and-and I'm just about to leave."_

"Please Naruto! It's only going to be-matter of fact, never mind! Someone is opening the door, I just want to talk real quick and then I'll be out your hair." She rushed her words as fast as she rushed in the door.

" _Sakura! Sakura!"_ Naruto practically screamed; terrified, but there was no answer. Sakura was on her way up. He looked at Sasuke with what looked like a new-found fear. All they had was a matter of moments to conceal his presence or a confrontation was at hand, and at this time neither option seem viable.

Sasuke watched Naruto as he turned away from the intercom and started at his nervous laugh again, pacing the room and overall freaking out. Naruto must have been worried of betraying Sakura's trust in some sense.

"Well…the timing is impeccable…" Sasuke murmured. He could feel a creeping anxiety making his hands moist and clammy. It was the extent of his nerves, being that he kept most emotions under a rigid surface and eerily calm face.

Naruto was panicking, pacing back and forth. Suddenly it was a beautiful relief to be living on the 12th floor of the apartment building with an old, rickety, malfunctioning excuse for an elevator. It was a high-pressured situation and Sasuke almost invited it. Sakura essentially became a distant memory and though his face betrayed the excitement coursing through him, it would be nice to see her.

" _Six years…"_ Sasuke thought, pondering the earlier conversation between Naruto and himself. Though, Naruto made viable points earlier; for unexplainable reasons, it was still important for him to make amends.

She would be far from happy with him, but that was not of his immediate concern. He wanted to know how she's been, what she's been up to, if she's looks different. He wondered of her happiness. These thoughts reminded him of Ino. He already had a special someone whose actions should have occupied his thoughts in such a way. In a short, pensive session Sasuke confused himself.

He rose from the couch and looked towards Naruto, poor boy was still in a frenzy.

"Naruto, it may be best if I just leave. She wouldn't be ready for this…not like this."

"Yeah, yeah, definitely…ummm I think you can leave out the front door, if you leave _now_ \- that elevator takes long, other than that… I don't know how we can do this!" Naruto's responses reflected hysteria, crying out the last words.

"I'm just gonna leave out the front door." Sasuke said. He began making his way towards the door and placed his hand on the knob, "…We'll finish this up another day." With those words Sasuke twisted the knob to the left not knowing that what was to come would eradicate all sensible action and rejuvenate old sentiments of the past.

Petal-pink tips gently wisped in the air as he swung the door open. Time trudged to a slow halt. It was as if the locomotion encircling them muted itself, ceasing all noise to credit this occasion. They stood beaming at each other in raw, emotional nakedness, untouched by the world around them.

The aroma of fresh daffodils absorbed his senses. There was never a time where flowers gave Sasuke any kind of comfort; but suddenly, the fragrance was significant enough to intoxicate him. _Her fragrance_. He attempted to understand the unaccustomed fervor that coursed through him at the sight of her; a puerile wave of affection spoke questionable volumes for him inwardly. That, and the color of embarrassment mixed with a pulsing anticipation stained his cheeks deep crimson. She was far more ravishing than his memory permitted. If he could have titled the situation, he would have lacked the vindication it deserved.

Her crystalline spheres tore holes in his resolve as she stood before him, unwavering. She gazed at him with great intensity, unbelieving of his presence. Was she seeing things? She eyed him slowly. It was _him_. In a moments' time, a rush of familiar heart pangs came over her. She quickly learned how easy it was for her emotional awareness to spill over and around her, losing the outline of her individuality. She became lost in a transparent realm of what felt like reality and fantasy. She drifted into the gravity of his stone cold onyx eyes. He was handsome. He was much more handsome than any asshole had the right to be.

Like two trains passing each other in the night, never had their separated paths interfered with one another before. Before, without a worry in the world they lived on, steady in their way. Today marked a new assessment of that.

"…Sasuke…?" Sakura stated incredulously. She glanced behind at Naruto, who was gawking at them with alarm. She regarded him, determining through the look he displayed that he too was perplexed. She started again.

"Sasuke, y-you're back-you're here…" _Great going Sakura, three words in and you become a stuttering fool._ He looked collected, sporting a slightly ruffled black suede jacket with bright silver zippers on the two lower bottom halves and on the upper right side, right below the collar. A grey zip-up hoodie lined it underneath, opened for what Sakura assumed was appeal and a white v-neck tee was visible underneath that. Fitted navy blue jeans brought the look together making Sakura realize she might have been staring too long.

"… … …Yes, I was just leaving." He took a moment to choose his words, peek behind him at Naruto and back to Sakura. The occasion initiated a series of questions Sasuke wanted to ask. There was so much he wanted to know. Sakura promptly directed her eyes to her shoes stepping aside so he had room to walk away; she shook her head yet again. Like she said, she didn't have time for him anymore.

"Of course." She replied, not lifting her eyes from ground. Her tone struck a chord with Sasuke, urging him to reply. Hesitation uncomfortably filled the air.

"…We should catch up. Goodbye…Sakura." Hurriedly he stepped past her without a single glimpse behind him.

 **Let me know what you think, please review!**


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